


so why can't you see (you belong with... each other?)

by yourlocalheartbreaker



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: 5+1 Things, All The Tropes, Bisexual Aaron Hotchner, Erin Strauss Being A Good Person, Fluff, Gen, I don't know how to tag this, M/M, Pining, The BAU Attempting To Be Matchmakers, The Only Angst is the Pining, and cute, cute stuff, getting together (eventually), it's self indulgent, there was only one bed!!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-10
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-17 00:27:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29958195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yourlocalheartbreaker/pseuds/yourlocalheartbreaker
Summary: derek and spencer are dating.so are emily and jennifer.penelope is super happy with marissa, her girlfriend.so what happens when the team make a bet to see who can get unit chief supervisory special agent aaron hotchner and three ex-wives david rossi together first?(alternatively, five times the bau tried to set up hotch and rossi and the one time someone succeeded)
Relationships: Aaron Hotchner & Emily Prentiss, Aaron Hotchner & Jennifer "JJ" Jareau, Aaron Hotchner & Spencer Reid, Aaron Hotchner/David Rossi, Jennifer "JJ" Jareau/Emily Prentiss (background), Penelope Garcia & Aaron Hotchner, Penelope Garcia/Original Female Character(s) (background), Spencer Reid/Derek Morgan (background), The BAU Team & Aaron Hotchner
Comments: 9
Kudos: 23





	1. the beginning

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Much_depressed](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Much_depressed/gifts).



> this was supposed to be a one-shot for the lovely Much_depressed's birthday. as you can see... it's not. but we're also now in march so i'm just going to leave it here so it stops collecting dust. it may also encourage me to finish the rest of it.
> 
> it got ridiculously long and is taking so long to finish so i'm splitting it into chapters to make it easier to read and also so i feel like i have accomplished something. the first two chapters are done, the third is almost finished and we're not going to talk about the rest.
> 
> enjoy, because it's actually fluff for once! :)

"Hey guys, I have a question," Spencer announced. 

It had been a day of paperwork, and not even the interesting paperwork, that meant Derek could recount how Spencer had managed to work out exactly where the unsub had been hiding due to his amazing brain, but the boring paperwork that meant he had to help Hotch justify their budget for the past three months.

"What is it?" Emily said with a sigh. She was so bored.

"How compatible do you think Hotch and Rossi would be?"

Derek almost fell off his chair. "Hotch and Rossi?"

Spencer nodded. "Yep."

"As in, Hotch and Rossi that are in the office up there?"

"Yep."

"As in, Aaron Hotchner and David Rossi, Hotch and Rossi?"

"Yes."

"As in, Mr I-Met-My-Wife-In-Highschool and Mr-I've-Been-Divorced-Three-Times, Hotch and Rossi?"

"Derek, we don't know a single other Hotch and Rossi. I mean, I suppose we know Sean Hotchner and Carolyn Rossi, but I doubt they'd be good together."

"Spencer, where has this come from?"

"Look, I understand that not everyone wants a relationship. But me and you are dating. Em and JJ are happy together. Penny never shuts up about her girlfriend. And we were never the people that were that bothered about being in relationships. We would just say it would happen when it happened. But them two…" He trailed off as he looked through the blinds.

Derek turned to watch too. He had to admit, they were cute together. There was a specific smile that Hotch only ever gave Rossi. It was a cute smile. And it was on his face at that very moment. And Derek had to admit that they were cute. But it was Hotch and Rossi.

He knew it was immature, but finding out Haley was pregnant had been bad enough. This would… no. He wasn't going to get involved.

"You know you want to," Emily said with a smirk.

"Are you profiling me Agent Prentiss," he teased.

"Nope. But, they're cute. They're both just too awkward to make the first move. All they need is a slight nudge, and they can work the rest out."

"Who only needs a slight nudge?" JJ asked, arms full of files as she came over, closely followed by Penelope.

Spencer, Emily and Derek gave each other panicked looks. Spencer opened his mouth to deny those words ever being spoken, but Emily and Derek's looks at each other and then at the ground said more than words ever would.

Garcia gasped. "Are we talking about Hotch and Rossi? Because if we are, then I whole-heartedly agree."

"Wait. Hotch and Rossi. Where on earth has that come from?" JJ asked.

"That's what I just said!" Derek said.

Spencer and Emily rolled their eyes. Penelope hit JJ in the arm lightly. "Just watch them."

JJ knew protesting would not do anything, so she just rolled her eyes fondly and turned to see what all the fuss was about.

None of them knew what conversation was happening between the two men, but whatever it was, Dave found amusing. There was a slight smirk on his face that only became wider as Aaron ducked his head to hide the blush staining his cheeks.

"Oh I kinda see it now," she admitted.

"See!" Penelope sounded victorious.

"I don't know guys. Should we really do this?"

"Whoever manages to set them up gets coffee from the rest of us. As in, we each have to pay for their coffee for a week," Emily said.

"Deal," Spencer said immediately.

"You're on," Penelope said.

"Why not?" JJ said. "I'm in. They both deserve to be happy."

Everyone turned to Derek.

"I don't approve. But fine."

He turned back to watch them.

Dave said something that made him smile, but Aaron froze mid-sentence. There was a prickling feeling in the back of his neck. It was the same feeling he got when he knew Jack was about to come in and say he'd done something he was meant to.

Ever so slowly, he turned to meet the rest of his team's eyes. He glared disapprovingly for a moment, but slowly smiled as JJ put the files down and hurried away, Garcia froze, Spencer and Derek pretended to carry on working and as Emily met his eyes like she wasn't doing anything wrong.

"They're plotting something," he told Dave.

"I'm sure we'll be fine. What's the worst that could happen?"

Hotch glared at him. They were so jinxed now. He just hoped that whatever it was they were plotting did not involve him. The last thing he needed was for Strauss or someone else that was higher up than him pulling him into a meeting because apparently Technical Analyst Garcia had sent them a very interesting email about the BAU and their need for therapy.

"Aaron stop worrying, you'll end up with frown lines. Whatever they're plotting won't have anything to do with us. Just relax."

Aaron decided that Dave was right, as he always was when it came to things that were stressing him out. He gave the other man a slight smile, which was returned without hesitation. Because why should either of them worry? Everything was going to be fine! 

Which were the famous last words of many people.


	2. attempt one: jj

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jj goes first.
> 
> she really didn't mean to.
> 
> it just... happened.
> 
> (alternatively: THERE WAS ONLY ONE BED!)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> look the whole thing is stupid and self-indulgent, let's just go with it okay?

JJ's intention had not been to set up her co-workers. At least, not initially. She'd agreed to the bet because she thought it would be funny. Harmless. Because there was no way any of them would be able to set up Hotch and Rossi- whom she affectionately referred to as Mom and Dad in her head. First of all, nobody would be brave enough. Second, there was no way any of them would dare to do that.

Or so she had thought. Then she'd been speaking to Will- he'd been unwell so her and Emily had taken Henry but also checked up on him- and he had asked her if Aaron was genuinely looking for a relationship.

It had been such an out of the blue question that her reflexive response had been: no, and why are you asking? Will had told her that he'd walked in on Emily plotting ideas to set him up with someone so he just wanted to know out of curiosity. That had changed everything. Because if her girlfriend was going to plot ideas and not tell her, then she would beat all of them.

As soon as she worked out what to do.

It was when Hotch announced that they were going out of state for a case that inspiration struck. Even though it wasn't her job anymore, booking the rooms fell to her, purely because she always knew what to say and because she would've had the most knowledge of where to stay.

Her plan would be foolproof. So the moment she got off the phone with the hotel, she sauntered over to where the others were getting ready to leave, and cleared her throat. Hotch and Rossi were stood outside their offices, discussing something. She tilted her chin towards them and winked.

"I'll be expecting my coffee very soon," she said.

"How- what?" Emily spluttered.

"They'll be together by the end of this case. I'm telling you."

Reid didn't seem convinced, but she knew she was right. There was no way her plan would fail. It was foolproof.

"Okay I think now would be a good time to call it a day and head back to the hotel," Hotch said, hours after the sun had set and their take-out had gone cold.

JJ was out of the precinct like a lightning bolt. If she wasn't the one to get the keys then her entire plot would be foiled and they would be stuck explaining exactly why she had done what she had done.

Hotch watched her go and made a mental note to check that she was okay. She'd seemed on edge the entire journey there, but the case they were dealing with hadn't felt like one she'd be this affected by.

"Hi, so this is really weird, but my team and I- we're actually trying to set up our two coworkers. There's a bit of a bet going. So could you please very loudly pretend that the whole only three rooms thing is an accident? They won't be mad, it's just, it'll seem less suspicious? It's so okay if you can't or won't, I was just wondering…" JJ said to the receptionist as she asked for their keys. Everyone else was hovering in the lobby.

"Which two coworkers are you setting up? Because if it's the one with dark hair and the man next to him, then I would do anything."

"Yes! It is them! How did you know?"

The receptionist, an elderly lady, smiled at her. "I just did. One of those things you start to pick up on when you get to my age."

"Right."

She raised her voice slightly. "Agent Jareau, I am so, so sorry. I have no idea what's happened to our booking system but something has clearly gone very wrong. We only have three rooms available. I can try restarting the whole thing, but you know what it's like with these old devices. Turn it off and we'll be here all night."

"No, no please don't feel bad! We're here for work, we can all be professional. And these things happen, it's nothing to worry about. I'll just take the keys from you, okay? It's just that it's been a long day and we'd all like to get some sleep," JJ said, loudly enough for the rest of them to stop their conversations and look over.

Hotch looked mildly concerned. JJ shook her head and he just nodded, trusting that she could handle herself.

"Are you absolutely sure?"

"Yes. In fact our superiors will probably be so happy that this happened. It saves them more money," she said.

The woman nodded and handed the keys over. JJ winked at her, making a mental note to send her some flowers when she won the bet, and headed back over to the team.

"Everything okay?" Hotch asked.

She nodded. It would be by the end of the case. "There's just one small problem. Basically, something went wrong with the bookings so now we're stuck with three rooms. We need to pair up."

Emily frowned and Penelope barely restrained her gasp. 

"I- okay. I suppose the bureau will be happy," Hotch said, rubbing his forehead.

"Well I'll be taking these two then," Derek said, plucking the two key cards from JJ's hand, before grabbing Spencer's hand and dragging him towards the elevators.

"We can have a girls night!" Penelope said, but the look in her eyes seemed murderous.

"Have a nice night," JJ said, giving Hotch and Rossi a key-card each before letting herself be dragged away by her girlfriend and best friend.

"I cannot believe you," Emily said.

"Says Miss-Let-Me-Plot-When-Will-Is-There," JJ teased.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Garcia said. "I can't believe JJ is going to win."

"Well that's not confirmed yet is it? JJ why do we have the middle room?" Emily asked.

JJ unlocked their door, then tapped on one of the walls. Almost immediately Derek appeared in the doorway.

"That's why," she said.

Emily's jaw dropped. "Miss Jareau!"

"I'm confused, what is going on?" Spencer asked, also hovering in the doorway.

JJ rolled her eyes and dragged the two of them in. Just in time as well, as only moments later, they heard Dave telling Aaron that he would be going to sleep that night, even if he had to forcefully restrain him.

"You're all going to owe me coffee. There was no mistake with the rooms. I did that deliberately," she said with a proud smile.

"Yeah but what I don't get is that both of ours have two beds- you didn't," Emily said.

She nodded. "I did."

"I'm sorry. Did what?" Morgan asked.

"Mom and Dad only have one bed," JJ said. "Which means they have to share."

"You are evil Jennifer Jareau. Well, thanks for warning us that we have thin walls. We'll see you all in the morning!" Spencer said, dragging Derek away and closing the door behind him.

"I had a really good plan as well," Penelope said, pouting. "Hey, would you guys mind if I went and hung out with Spence and Der for a bit?"

"Course not! Have fun!" JJ said.

Penelope smiled and headed out.

Next door, Aaron and Dave were having an argument. Only, they were well aware that most hotels had thin walls, and they knew the girls were probably trying to sleep, because they had seemed exhausted.

"You're not sleeping on the couch Aaron," Dave hissed.

"Look, I'm not going to ask you to sleep on the couch or share a bed with me!" Aaron exclaimed, going to brush his teeth.

"You're not asking me. I'm telling you. We are sharing the bed, it's not that big of a deal. I've dealt with your nightmares before. Lord knows I have several of them. There's nothing to feel bad about."

"Dave, I don't want to make you uncomfortable," Aaron said.

Dave sighed. "You and your Southern manners. If you really must, we can make a wall of cushions between us, but if you don't get on the bed I will ask Emily if we can switch rooms. And we both know what happened the last time you two roomed."

The short story was alcohol, karaoke and a trip to the E.R because Hotch broke his nose.

"Fine. And we don't need a cushion wall. We aren't kids," he said, exiting the bathroom in his pajamas. He honestly didn't know why his heart was racing. It was Dave. Dave was good and comforting. 

"You sure about that?" 

Aaron just rolled his eyes and got into the bed. Almost immediately, he started shivering. It was exceptionally cold in the room, and the bed was doing very little to warm him up, but he wasn't about to inconvenience anyone and ask for a second blanket.

Dave smiled at him, and by the time he had climbed into the bed, Aaron was out like a light. He was on his stomach, hair falling onto his forehead now it wasn't gelled back. It made him look softer. Less like a scary FBI agent. Not that Dave had ever thought of Aaron was scary.

He turned the lamp off and turned onto his side. Perhaps this time, they would both sleep through the night.

It was almost like he was always destined to jinx them. Somewhere around midnight, something felt off and he jerked awake suddenly. He couldn't see any immediate dangers reflected in the mirror, nor did there seem to be anyone else in the room or outside the window, which was very much locked.

He rolled over and saw that Aaron was shivering. Not from a nightmare, but from the cold. He sighed to himself. Only this idiot.

"Aaron. Wake up," he said gently. When Aaron didn't open his eyes, Dave shook him slightly. Almost immediately his eyes flew open and he was grabbing around for something to defend himself with, a strangled cry leaving his throat.

But Dave knew Aaron better than Aaron knew himself and he shifted away. "Aaron, it's just Dave. You were shivering, and I think your sleep was being ruined by the fact that you're cold."

"Dave," he whispered, voice hoarse.

"Yeah."

"I'm cold."

"I know. Look, I know you'll feel horrible if you went down and asked for a blanket and even worse if you asked someone to get that blanket for you, so I won't even offer. But I won't let you freeze. Come here."

"What?"

"Here. Now."

"Dave," Aaron started.

Dave tutted. "Come here, and let body heat do its thing. Or else I'll fall back asleep because I'm literally a furnace, you'll be laying there cold, and then when the morning comes, I will feel betrayed and you'll be cranky."

He knew it was slightly morally wrong to guilt-trip Aaron into accepting cuddles, but he really did feel bad for him and his natural coldness. And he knew the only reason Aaron wouldn't feel like a burden would be if he turned it into something that would make him feel better.

Aaron only hesitated for a single moment more before rolling over, so his back was pressed to Dave's stomach. He let out a quiet sigh of happiness and pulled the duvet over the two of them. On the other hand, Dave winced slightly because why was Aaron always so cold?

"Thanks for always being good to me Dave," Aaron said.

There was a slight warmth in Dave's stomach as a result of those words, but he shoved it down and smiled instead. He was not developing feelings for his friend. He just wasn't. He couldn't be, because he refused to let his life to become a rom-com. The single bed was bad enough.

Aaron also felt warmer inside, but he would repress it because he was Aaron Hotchner and refused to accept his feelings. Even though he knew exactly what the strange feeling in his stomach was. It was fine. Everything was fine. It was probably just because he was tired.

Dave was still there when he woke up in the morning, and Aaron had to pretend he really needed to piss so he didn't end up dreaming about that happening every single morning.

When they came down, everyone else was already eating breakfast. Which was very unusual, because it was always Aaron that went down first to see what their options were. He would then tell Dave, who would either go and get it ready for everyone, or buy them all breakfast. And then depending on who had met with Strauss last, one would go get Em and JJ up, and the other got Derek and Spence out of bed.

"So… did you two have a pleasant night?" JJ asked.

Hotch started choking on his orange juice, staining his tie and shirt. "I'm sorry, what?"

JJ and Emily gave each other the same nervous looks.

"We just, erm, we heard, erm, some noises? Coming from one of the rooms?"

Dave paused his cautious dabbing to stare at her. "And your immediate thought was that it was us? Is there something going on we don't know about?"

The team had never been so thankful for the no-profiling rule.

"That was us!" Penelope blurted out. "We were playing a game of… UNO! And it got a little bit violent. But Spencer's fine. Aren't you?"

Spencer looked up at them. "Of course I am."

"Right. Well I'm going to change because there's no way anyone is going to take me seriously if they see there's a juice stain on my trousers," Hotch said, hurriedly excusing himself from the table.

Dave watched the team for a few moments. "If there's something I should know about, you'd tell me, wouldn't you?"

Everyone nodded, seeming like the perfect group of angels.

"Good." He excused himself to make sure Aaron was okay, and to take him something extra to eat.

"Jennifer, you failed. My go!" Emily said, the moment he was out of ear-shot.

"Erm, no. We're not creating a timetable. It's just whoever can enact their plan first," Penelope said.

Everyone else nodded along.

"Fine. But mine is going to be so successful."

"Sure," JJ said, sarcasm colouring her tone.

Emily whacked over the head, just in time for Hotch to glare. She just smiled at him. Her plan was definitely going to work, and then she would be able to lord it over everyone else for the rest of time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)
> 
> follow my tumblr yourlocalheartbreaker  
> and my original writings blog where i get a little bit more political: sumayyahwritesthings

**Author's Note:**

> come yell at me about mortch and other things on tumblr: yourlocalheartbreaker
> 
> :)


End file.
